Music of chance unites two teens

Delfin Vigil

Published
4:00 am PDT, Sunday, September 28, 2008

Actress Kat Dennings poses for a portrait while promoting her movie "Nick and Nora's Infinante Playlist" in Toronto, Canada during the International Film Festival Saturday Sept. 6, 2008. (AP Photo/Carlo Allegri) less

Actress Kat Dennings poses for a portrait while promoting her movie "Nick and Nora's Infinante Playlist" in Toronto, Canada during the International Film Festival Saturday Sept. 6, 2008. (AP Photo/Carlo ... more

Photo: CARLO ALLEGRI, AP

Photo: CARLO ALLEGRI, AP

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Actress Kat Dennings poses for a portrait while promoting her movie "Nick and Nora's Infinante Playlist" in Toronto, Canada during the International Film Festival Saturday Sept. 6, 2008. (AP Photo/Carlo Allegri) less

Actress Kat Dennings poses for a portrait while promoting her movie "Nick and Nora's Infinante Playlist" in Toronto, Canada during the International Film Festival Saturday Sept. 6, 2008. (AP Photo/Carlo ... more

Photo: CARLO ALLEGRI, AP

Music of chance unites two teens

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There are quite possibly an infinite number of reasons why the new movie starring Michael Cera ("Juno") and Kat Dennings ("The 40-Year-Old Virgin") is destined to become a classic. Not the least of which is the film's cool title: "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist."

Based on the book of the same name, the story throws together bored New Jersey teens Nick (Cera) and Norah (Dennings), who share an obsession for music. Only problem is that Norah is Nick's shallow ex-girlfriend's best friend, and lots of trivial teenage traumas get in the way.

A night out across the bridge in New York City, where Nick's band is playing and Norah and her friends happen to heading may be the one thing to get these two to fall in love ... or hate one another. Cera and Dennings spoke to The Chronicle about the movie.

Q:Was there a particular scene in the script or book that grabbed you and made you think, "I can't wait to do this scene"?

Cera: I thought the whole thing was well written and that Peter Sollet, the director, would make it awesome.

Dennings: Yeah. I agree.

Q:Was there a specific scene that made you laugh out loud or seemed like it would be especially challenging?

Cera: I thought being in New York for that amount of time would be enticing.

Dennings: I liked the prospect of wearing one outfit the whole movie. I'd never done that and thought it would be fun.

Q:Since the plot is mostly set in one single night in New York, was it difficult to keep that same vibe during the entire shoot?

Cera: Not really. It was a pretty condensed time. We shot just a handful of weeks. It was just fun. Not challenging at all. Just like being up all night.

Dennings: When we watched the movie it felt like how it felt to be there.

Q:Filming in New York City seems like it could be pretty stressful. What do you attribute the fun vibe to?

Cera: A good group. Great crew. Great actors. Everyone was there to have a good time. There were no downers.

Dennings: It could have been a stressful shoot. But it wasn't. Everyone had a great attitude. A lot of them were from New York, so they knew the ropes.

Q:New York City is like a character in the film. What did you learn about the city?

Dennings: It's small. The Lower East Side where we were filming a lot is really little. You can get everywhere in 10 minutes by foot if you walk fast.

Q:The entire is cast is about the same age. What was that like?

Dennings: It felt young.

Cera: It felt fun.

Q:Did the music feel like a character too?

Cera: Yeah. It was No. 4 on the call sheet. Music. I'm not a music chaser like the character. I support music though.

Dennings: You think rock 'n' roll is here to stay?

Cera: I hope it's around to stay for the long run. I love the following that it has.

Dennings: I love music to death. I don't chase many things generally, but I can identify with being very passionate about music.

Q:Probably your most intense scene together was at the actual Electric Ladyland studios. What was it like to be there?

Dennings: It was very velvety in there. Jimi Hendrix's white piano was there. It felt like being in a music church.

Q:What's it smell like in there?

Dennings: Like music!

Q:Does that mean cigarettes and b.o.?

Dennings: It smelled like beauty.

Q:Of all the songs on the film soundtrack, which do you most identify with the movie?

Dennings: "Last Words" (by the Real Tuesday Weld) is the song that runs throughout the film. I instantly think of the movie when I hear that.

Cera: I like the Vampire Weekend song they made for the film.

Q:What do you think makes this more than just a teen movie and more universal?

Dennings: I think that anyone can relate to liking someone right away and wanting to be with them, but not knowing whether or not you're ever going to see them again.

Q:How would you explain to either your grandmother or 5-year-old niece what the title "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist" means to you.

Dennings: It's PG-13, so I couldn't bring my 5-year-old niece. Someone told me it's about Nick and Norah being each other's music. I don't know exactly what that means. But I thought it was romantic and profound.

Cera: I don't know. I never thought of it that way. I just liked the script and story and the title just came with it.